My other 2 children and their children arrived yesterday so there are now 10 adults and 14 children in this house. More present opening last night and bedtime was chaos. We go home this morning and so does Daughter 1.
Dordogne and Norfolk. Clay in Dordogne, sandy in Norfolk.
OH has gone to work. The second load of bedlinen is in the wash. Kitchen and fridge sort out has been done ... leeks and potatoes are cooking in the slow cooker and when cooked they'll will join the leftover peas and carrots and the full cream milk to make a Cream of Veg soup for OH's lunch flasks. The last of the roasties are being guzzled by a pair of magpies in the back garden as I type and the remains of the tiramisu have gone in the bin (resulting in much wailing and gnashing of teeth from OH, but it's made with raw egg so I daren't keep it longer). I am going to have to find/invent a recipe for individual hazlenuit tiramisus ... OH is besotted.
I've discovered an unopened box of Turkish Delight and a big round of toasted almond brittle along with another jar of pickled walnuts all in a box upstairs on the blanket chest where I was hiding OH's birthday presents. I'll bring them out on New Year's Eve
ETA ... the Black Headed Laughing Gulls have joined the magpies at the buffet 😊
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
What a houseful @Busy-Lizzie! Hope you have an uneventful drive home. Glad you managed to salvage something for Christmas @Ergates and you still have some family time to look forward to. We were round at my daughter's for Christmas Day (beautifully cooked Christmas lunch by her OH). Lovely to play card games with the granddaughters while their mum and dad snoozed. Daughter's pulled muscle in her back easing off but she was still on painkillers. They round to ours yesterday for hearty vegetable soup for lunch - we forwent the traditional walk on the Common that usually precedes it Daughter, still in pain, got up too late! We'll go in the week as none of them are back to school just yet. Then Monopoly - youngest GD's favourite - with many rule changes as we went along. At some point we deemed the game over, me having languished in jail for much of it and the only property I managed to buy was Old Kent Road. Tea was a triumph - cold turkey, salady bits, a lovely cheese board - and the pudding I had been preparing for the previous couple of days - the mousse set, yay! - also went down well. So much chocolate, so much sugar, so much cream! But so worth it! OH and I flopped with full tummies after they left and watched Death in Paradise. Perfect. Glad to hear that Hosta is doing OK @Dovefromabove. Hopefully he will feel up to joining us again the New Year. And now - a delicious few days of being able to do just what we want! I have a few books I'm looking forward to getting stuck into.
Good morning just sitting down with a coffee and perusing this forum now that I’ve changed the bedding and put the w/m on. Just the bathroom to tidy shortly then that’s me and chores done for the day. It sounds as if you’ve all had a very pleasant few days. The same here. Not many left overs to deal with today, some pork which I’m going to make into a version of cottage pie for dinner tonight, then that’s it all used up (the half I cut up for Christmas that is - the other half is wrapped up well and residing in the freezer until needed - I hadn’t expected such a large joint, I’d asked for one to serve 4, thinking it would do for the two of us with enough left over for another meal. I should have asked for one to serve 2. But hey ho, you live and learn, and it won’t go to waste). It’s starting to look rather cloudy outside, I think some rain is due again soon.
We are home, having had a lovely Christmas. We did get snow yesterday, but on slightly higher ground. It was really pretty seeing the hilltops turn white.
How can you lie there and think of England When you don't even know who's in the team
@Busy-Lizzie it sounds as though there is mayhem, fun and laughter with your family this Christmas. Tiring I expect but think of all the lovely memories you are making. Not doing too well here today. G/son and fiancee arrived safely at 2.30 am but poor G/daughter and partner are still trying to get here! Left home in Sussex at 6.30am, M25 gridlocked, M4 slow moving and 3 hours ago they were only passing the Bristol area. At least the Seven bridge seems to be still open in spite of the wind. But just heard that a huge tree has come down across our road a little way down from us, torn up by the roots and tangling itself in all the phone cables. The lovely locals are trying to clear it but as it is so big (thick trunk) it may need specialist work. To make matters worse it is peeing down with rain and blowing a hoolie. Have phoned G/daughter and told her to bypass our road and continue on to next village and follow the old narrow route up and over our mountain and to approach us from the other direction - hoping the trees on this route are still standing! We are awaiting the arrival of two very exhausted travellers.
Good afternoon to all you Forkers, glad most seem to have got through the annual mayhem reasonably intact. Sorry to those still encountering problems. Our day went off well in some of my OH convicing herself the turkey wasn't big enough, there was plenty, indeed, we will be eating leftovers for a couple of days. Managed to get into the garden for an hour this afternoon.
Love the photo Punkdoc. Glad you’re home safe and sound. I’m very pleased to hear that Hosta is ok. Another hot day starting here. Pixel is flopped in a shady spot on the veranda. 😁
Posts
My other 2 children and their children arrived yesterday so there are now 10 adults and 14 children in this house. More present opening last night and bedtime was chaos. We go home this morning and so does Daughter 1.
I've discovered an unopened box of Turkish Delight and a big round of toasted almond brittle along with another jar of pickled walnuts all in a box upstairs on the blanket chest where I was hiding OH's birthday presents. I'll bring them out on New Year's Eve
ETA ... the Black Headed Laughing Gulls have joined the magpies at the buffet 😊
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
We were round at my daughter's for Christmas Day (beautifully cooked Christmas lunch by her OH). Lovely to play card games with the granddaughters while their mum and dad snoozed. Daughter's pulled muscle in her back easing off but she was still on painkillers.
They round to ours yesterday for hearty vegetable soup for lunch - we forwent the traditional walk on the Common that usually precedes it Daughter, still in pain, got up too late! We'll go in the week as none of them are back to school just yet. Then Monopoly - youngest GD's favourite - with many rule changes as we went along. At some point we deemed the game over, me having languished in jail for much of it and the only property I managed to buy was Old Kent Road.
Tea was a triumph - cold turkey, salady bits, a lovely cheese board - and the pudding I had been preparing for the previous couple of days - the mousse set, yay! - also went down well. So much chocolate, so much sugar, so much cream! But so worth it!
OH and I flopped with full tummies after they left and watched Death in Paradise. Perfect.
Glad to hear that Hosta is doing OK @Dovefromabove. Hopefully he will feel up to joining us again the New Year.
And now - a delicious few days of being able to do just what we want! I have a few books I'm looking forward to getting stuck into.
just sitting down with a coffee and perusing this forum now that I’ve changed the bedding and put the w/m on. Just the bathroom to tidy shortly then that’s me and chores done for the day.
It sounds as if you’ve all had a very pleasant few days. The same here. Not many left overs to deal with today, some pork which I’m going to make into a version of cottage pie for dinner tonight, then that’s it all used up (the half I cut up for Christmas that is - the other half is wrapped up well and residing in the freezer until needed - I hadn’t expected such a large joint, I’d asked for one to serve 4, thinking it would do for the two of us with enough left over for another meal. I should have asked for one to serve 2. But hey ho, you live and learn, and it won’t go to waste).
It’s starting to look rather cloudy outside, I think some rain is due again soon.
We are home, having had a lovely Christmas.
We did get snow yesterday, but on slightly higher ground. It was really pretty seeing the hilltops turn white.
When you don't even know who's in the team
S.Yorkshire/Derbyshire border
Not doing too well here today. G/son and fiancee arrived safely at 2.30 am but poor G/daughter and partner are still trying to get here! Left home in Sussex at 6.30am, M25 gridlocked, M4 slow moving and 3 hours ago they were only passing the Bristol area. At least the Seven bridge seems to be still open in spite of the wind. But just heard that a huge tree has come down across our road a little way down from us, torn up by the roots and tangling itself in all the phone cables. The lovely locals are trying to clear it but as it is so big (thick trunk) it may need specialist work. To make matters worse it is peeing down with rain and blowing a hoolie.
Have phoned G/daughter and told her to bypass our road and continue on to next village and follow the old narrow route up and over our mountain and to approach us from the other direction - hoping the trees on this route are still standing!
We are awaiting the arrival of two very exhausted travellers.
When you don't even know who's in the team
S.Yorkshire/Derbyshire border
Managed to get into the garden for an hour this afternoon.
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
I’m very pleased to hear that Hosta is ok.
Another hot day starting here. Pixel is flopped in a shady spot on the veranda. 😁